Customer Spotlight: Powell Industries

Powell Industries manufactures electrical equipment and computer systems that monitor the flow of electricity in industrial facilities like refineries, utilities, paper mills and more. The company’s products include switchgear, bus duct and process control systems.

Powell is credited with bringing arc-resistant technology to the US. An electric arc is a luminous discharge of current that is formed when a strong current jumps a gap in a circuit. It is estimated that electrical arc flashes severely injure or kill five to 10 times per day in the United States. Powell equipment is designed to direct the flow of dangerous energy and gases safely in the event of a catastrophic event.

 It is estimated that electrical arc flashes severely injure or kill five to 10 times per day in the United States.”

In collaboration with Airfloat, Powell has created a moving assembly line for custom metal-clad switchgear at its Houston, Texas, factory. The enormous cabinets are about the size of a bedroom closet and can weigh thousands of pounds. The switchgear are built from the ground up on custom Airfloat platforms, which literally float the equipment on a film of continuously flowing air down the 15-station assembly line.

The Airfloat platforms allow workers to move and position switchgear by hand. Additionally, an individual cabinet can be pulled from the line if necessary, allowing the rest of the units to advance. This would be impossible with a conventional drag-chain conveyor.

By Gary Mollohan

[nggallery id=8]